Gravity Rises (S3)

TTF: Part Six

It was evening by the time the trio returned to the lab. Predictably, Lee had asked to meet the nymphs, so he could "woo the lovely ladies." Ford never would have guessed that the sketches of forest nymphs in his Journals would capture anyone's heart, but he did have to admit the nymphs were beautiful (and drawn by quite the skilled artist, if he did say so himself).

Somehow, Fidds had ended up coming with them. He seemed reluctant, but Ford supposed he wanted to keep tabs on Stanley. It was unclear why Fidds had such a strong reaction to Stan's arrival. Was he truly concerned for his safety and his work? Or did he have something to hide? He had only met Lee once before; Ford didn't think that was long enough to develop such strong hatred for someone.

Whatever his motivation, Fidds stayed with the brothers for the day. As Lee romped through the forest, Fidds stayed back, his shoulders perpetually hunched. This didn't help the mood, but despite the obvious tension, they still had an exciting adventure — mainly because Lee ignored Fidds' hostility except to joke about it.

Lee seemed as excited as Ford had been when he first explored this forest, though he didn't express it the same way Ford had. It took Ford a bit to get used to his brother's personality again, after being away from him for so many years; but he soon remembered that, for Lee, what seemed to be flippancy or mockery was actually awe and respect. Lee didn't comment on the grandeur of the creatures he saw, but instead made jokes about the gnomes and the fairies. At one point, a group of gnomes scampered by, carrying one of Susan Wentworth's pies. At least, Ford assumed it was made by Susan (or "Lazy Susan," as people called her after the idiopathic damage to her eye), seeing as she was the only townsperson he knew who routinely baked pies. Lee watched the gnomes with wide eyes, laughing. "Wow," he said, "they'll have pie for days — that thing's twice their size!"

Ford, for his part, wondered whether Susan had seen the gnomes as they stole from her, and whether she'd finally believe in the supernatural. Not likely, knowing the people of Gravity Rises.

Soon, they reached the tree of Ford's favorite hamadryad, Juniper. When Lee said nymphs, he hadn't specified what kind of nymphs, so Ford had chosen to visit a friend.

Her tree stood within the habitat of the leprecorns — a horrifying cross between leprechauns and unicorns. The hamadryads didn't have much of a habitat, the way other creatures did. The species of the forest had firm territories, some of which were hidden by invisibility fields, like the minotaur dwelling. The hamadryads, though, were interspersed between the other habitats. Their cousins — the naiads and the dryads — had their own territories, but the hamadryads lived everywhere and nowhere. Ford supposed that when you could merge seamlessly with the tree to which you were bonded, the need for property became greatly diminished.

Lee became instantly enamored with the leprecorns, laughing as their horns played an annoying loop of Danny Boy, and Fidds sulked on the fringes of the clearing. Ford shuddered at the music and approached Juniper's tree. "Juniper," he called, "it's Stanford. I've brought friends."

The tree in front of him wavered, as if in a mirage. A tall woman clad in a dress of pleated juniper needles stepped out, her form shifting from ethereal to solid.

"Stanford Pines!" It was both a greeting and an admonishment. "Why do you never visit?"

"I'm sorry, Juniper, I really did mean to—"

She waved a hand, flipping her long auburn hair over one shoulder. "I keep telling you, call me June."

He didn't think it much mattered which he called her; neither were her real name anyway, just how he referred to her, since she claimed she was hesitant to share her real name with a human. Still, nymphs got testy when one didn't comply with their whims, so he relented. "Okay, June, I apologize for not visiting sooner."